Product Safety & Quality

We measure key product and package quality attributes to ensure our beverage products in the marketplace meet Company requirements and consumer expectations. Consistency and reliability are critical to our product quality and to meeting global regulatory requirements and Company standards. The global nature of our business requires that the Coca-Cola system has the highest standards and processes for ensuring consistent product safety and quality -- from our concentrate production to our bottling and product delivery.

To ensure such consistency and reliability, the Coca-Cola system is governed by The Coca-Cola Management System (TCCMS). TCCMS is our integrated quality management program, which holds all of our operations systemwide to the same standards for production and distribution of our beverages. It guarantees the highest standards in the management of product quality, the environment, and health and safety throughout the Coca-Cola system.

TCCMS has endorsement from all leadership throughout the Coca-Cola system. It guides our product safety and quality by integrating and aligning business and quality objectives with consistent metrics to monitor performance; integrating preventive action as a management tool, including more rigorous demands when planning new product and service introductions; incorporating Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) into our system standards; and defining problem-solving methodologies and tools to drive continuous product safety and quality improvements.

To stay current with new regulations, industry best practices and marketplace conditions, we consistently reassess the relevance of our product safety and quality guidelines in TCCMS. Given the increased awareness of the importance of food safety, not only in manufacturing but also throughout the entire supply chain, we are refining our requirements to further ensure that TCCMS embodies the most recent and stringent manufacturing processes.

Each business within the Coca-Cola system must establish, implement, document and maintain a safety and quality system in accordance with TCCMS requirements.

In 2007, we increased our Company’s Global Product Quality Index rating to 94.5 from 94.2 in 2006, reaching our highest-ever value. Our 2007 Company Global Package Quality Index rating increased to 90.4 from 89.2 in 2006, also reaching our highest-ever value.